Device for applying indexing means at spaced intervals on an elongated element



INVENTOR.

JAMES DflRcY HTTORNEY DARCY DEVICE FOR APPLYING INDEXING MEANS AT SPACED Filed Oct.

INTERVALS ON AN ELONGATED ELEMENT March 13, 1962 United States atent 3,025,212 DEVTCE FUR APPLYHNG HNDEXWG MEAN AT SPACED ENTERVALS N AN ELQNGATED ELEMENT James DArcy, Garden City, N.Y., assignor to Dairel tlompany, 1nd, Hempstead, N111, a corporation of New York Filed Get. 8, 1959, Ser. No. 845,228 13 Claims. (Cl. 156 552) This invention relates to the application of an indexing means in the form of a tab to spaced intervals of an elongated element as, for example, a strand, tape or film to mark predetermined sections or lengths thereof. More particularly, the invention deals with a device of the character described employing a delivery member supporting a predetermined number of the indexing means and delivering the same to an applicator station on the device, the device including means for pressure applying the indexing means or tab to a tape or the like guided through the device adjacent said station.

The novel features of the invention will be best understood from the following description, when taken together with the accompanying drawing, in which certain embodimenis of the invention are disclosed and, in which, the separate parts are designated by suitable reference char acters in each of the views and, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view showing part of the reel of a tape recording machine with one of my improved devices supported adjacent the reel, the support for the reel and the device being omitted.

FiG. 1A is a diagrammatic view of a number of the elements of the device shown in the position of pressure applying the indexing means or tab to a tape, thesupports for the several elements being omitted for sake of clarity.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 1, with the delivery member removed and with part of the construction broken away and in section.

FIG. 3 is a section on the broken line 3-3 of FIG. 1, omitting the background showing; and

REG. 4 is an enlarged view substantially on the line 4-4 of FIG. 1, with part of the construction shown in elevation and diagrammatically illustrating sectional portions of the tape at the applicator station.

My present invention deals with indexing means, such, for example, as tabs of the type and kind disclosed in Patent Number 2,853,042, dated September 23, 1958, and, more particularly, to a device arranged adjacent the Winding reel of a recording machine, through which magnetic tape is guided adjacent a tab applicator station on said device.

The showing in the accompanyig drawing is for the purpose of illustrating one adaptation and use of my invention and reference character generally applies to the device, which comprises a unitary assemblage which can be adhesively or otherwise fixed to a support, such, for example, as the cabinet of a tape recording apparatus and this support is indicated, in part, at 11 in FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawing and is omitted from FIGS. 1 and 2 for sake of clarity.

The device 10 comprises a bottom plate 12, including two angularly extending post supporting portions 13 and 14, respectively, upon which, posts 15 and 16 are sup ported, note, in this connection, FIG. 2 of the drawing. Arranged centrally of the bottom plate 12, or the more or less rounded portion thereof, is an aperture 17, in which the lower portion 18 of a bearing post 19 is arranged.

In the present showing, the lower end of the post 19 has a threaded extension 20 to be secured to the support 11. In this connection, it will also appear, from a consideration of FIG. 4 of the drawing, that the post 15 has ice a threaded extension 15 also engaging the support 11 to key the device 141? against movement on the support 11.

The bearing post 19 has an integral collar or flange 21 intermediate its ends and, above the collar, the post has flattened sides, as indicated at 2 2 in FIG. 3 of the drawing, to receive a tool in attaching and detaching the post with respect to the support 11.

Supported in the upper end of the post 16 and extending in the direction of the post 15 is a curved plate 23, preferably having slight spring properties which serves to guide an elongated element, such, for example, as the magnetic tape 24 of a tape recording machine through the device 16 and to position a portion 24 of the tape arranged between the plate 23 and the post 15 at what I term an applicator station 25 of the device.

Suitably fixed to the upper surface of the rounded portion of the plate 12 is a disc 26, preferably of plastic material, which includes an extension 27 forming a support for a back-up roller 28 constituting part of the station 25.

Considering FIGS. 3 and 4 of the drawing, it will appear that the flange 21 of the post 19 is positioned above and spaced from the disc 26 to provide a space in which an actuating disc 29 is arranged, the disc 29 being pivoted to the disc 26 and the bottom plate 12 by a pivot pin 36), note FIG. 2 of the drawing.

The disc 29 has two extending arms 31 and 32, the arm 31 supporting actuating means which, in the present illustration, is in the form of an upstanding manually actuated rod 33.

The other arm 32 of the disc 29 supports a pin 34, on which a rubber pressure roller 35 is mounted, the roller 35 constituting one of the active parts or elements of the applicator station 2 5, as will appear from the diagrammatic illustration in FIG. 1A of the drawing.

At this time, it might be well to bring out that the portion 24 is normally supported in a straight line between 15 and 23, as diagrammatically illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawing. However, when the disc 29 is rotated on its pivot 30, the pressure roller 35 is moved into the direction of the back-up roller 28, the tape portion 24' is then flexed in the manner diagrammatically illustrated in FIG. 1A in pressure applying an indexing means, such, for example, as a tab 36 to the tape 24, as said tape is being fed through the device or applicator station 25 of the device by the reel 37, noted, in part, in FIG. 1 of the drawing.

The reel 37 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction. In FIG. 1, 38 diagrammatically indicates part of the tape wound upon the reel and at 36, 36" I have indicated two previously applied tabs 36 dividing predetermined recorded sections on the wound portion 38 of the tape.

The tabs 36 are preferably fashioned from suitable plastic material and, by virtue of the contour of the tab, as best illustrated in FIG. 4 of the drawing, the protruding portion of the tabs will pass freely beneath side members of the reel 37 or the ribs 37' thereof, as clearly 7 in which tabs are adapted to be arranged for delivery to the roller 28 of the station 25, one of the tabs being so positioned in the showing in FIG. 1 of the drawing and also in FIG. 4 of the drawing.

The ring 41 includes an upwardly extending sleeve portion 43 having a reduced end, upon which the ring 40 seats and has a pressed fit, as clearly noted in FIG.

3 of the drawing. Fixed to the ring 40 is a milled knob 44, having a socket in which a rubber friction ring .5 is supported for engagement with the upper end of the post 19 to frictionally retain the member 39 in operative positions supporting the tabs at the applicator station. To further insure positioning of the member 39, the flange 21 has an upwardly extending detent 46, note FIG. 3 of the drawing, operating in twelve circumferentially spaced apertures 47 on the bottom ring 41; only two of the apertures are illustrated in FIG. 3 of the drawing, but these apertures are so spaced with respect to positioning of the detent 46 as to support each successive slit 42 in alinement with the roller 28 for positioning each tab in the manner illustrated clearly in FIG. 1 of the drawing.

For sake of clarity, only two of the tabs are illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawing, in other words, the tab shown abutting upon the roller 28 and a tab just to the right of this tab. The latter tab or the protruding end portion thereof is flexed over the inner concaved surface of the plate 23, as indicated at 48, so that, as the member 39 is rotated in a clockwise direction, the flexed end 48 will snap over the end portion of the plate 23 and into position on the roller 28.

Considering FIG. 3 of the drawing, it will appear that screws 49 are employed to couple the knob 44 with the disc 40, which construction facilitates removal of the knob in renewing the friction sleeve 45 as and when desired. Any suitable means can be employed for actuating the member 39, as well as the disc 29. However, in the simple adaptation of the invention, the milled knob 44 facilitates manual rotation of the member 39 in bringing successive tabs into operative position at the station 25 and, in like manner, the rod 33 facilitates manual movement of the pressure roller 35 into the operative position, as noted in FIG. 1A of the drawing in application of the tab to the upper edge portion of the tape 24 as the tape is fed through said station.

Considering FIG. 2 of the drawing, it will appear that the disc 29 has an arc-shaped aperture 50 freely clearing the post 19 as the disc 29 is actuated in the manner described. The post 19 supports a spring finger 51, clearly shown in FIG. 2 of the drawing, which operates upon a wall of the aperture 50 and normally maintains the roller 35 in the position shown in FIG. 1 of the drawing.

It will, thus, appear that, after the roller 35 has been manually brought into the position shown in FIG. 1A of the drawing, release of pressure on the rod 33 will automatically return the roller 35 to the position of FIG. 1 by action of the spring 51 and this operation is further assisted by the normally straight extension of the tape 24 where it passes through the applicator station 25 or, in other words, at the position represented by the reference character 24' in FIG. 1 of the drawing.

It will be understood that the indexing means, such, for example, as the tabs 36 may have any type and kind of markings thereon to distinguish one tab from others in order to facilitate keeping of definite records of recordings on sections between two tabs or in locating the beginning of a recording to be reproduced.

In FIG. 4 of the drawing, the stippled portion of the tab 36 below the dot-dash line 52 represents that part of the tab to which an adhesive has been applied for attachment of the tab to the upper edge portion of what would be termed the back or non-recorded side of the tape 24. From a consideration of this figure, it will appear that the ring 41 supports the tab 36 in the desired position for attachment to the tape, the ring 41 being arranged in close proximity to the roller 28. It will also appear, from a consideration of FIG. 4 of the drawing, that the inner end of each of the slits 42 serves as a stop and, thus, controls extension of the other end of the tab, so as to be positioned upon the back-up roller 28 in a manner to insure positive application of the tape between said guides movable toward and from said backup roller and a rotatable member for intermittently delivering and supporting indexing means between said back-up roller and said first named means, said back-up roller guides, first named means and rotatable member being all mounted in connection with said bottom plate in defining an applicator station, means for feeding an elongated element over the guides at said station and between said first named means and back-up roller, and said first named means being actuated to move said element into engagement with said indexing means and back-up roller in application of said indexing means to said element.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said first named means comprises a yieldable roller, and means for normally supporting said yieldable roller in spaced relation to said back-up roller.

3. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said back-up roller has a fixed mounting in connection with the bottom plate.

4. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein said member rotates on a perpendicular post fixed to the bottom plate, and means supporting a plurality of circumferentially spaced indexing means on and in projected relationship with respect to the periphery of said member.

5. A device as defined in claim 4, wherein means is employed for definitely positioning said member with each of said indexing means supported thereon successively in registering position with said back-up roller.

6. A device as defined in claim 5, wherein said last named means comprises spaced discs on said member, and one of said discs having circumferentially spaced tangentially inclined slits for reception of said indexing means.

7. A device as defined in claim 6, wherein a knob is secured to said last named disc, and means forming a frictional bearing for said post in said knob.

8. A device as defined in claim 1, wherein one of said guides comprises an elongated curved plate partially overlying said first named means when in normal position.

9. A device of the character described, comprising a bottom plate fixed to a support, an upstanding bearing post on said plate, a tab supporting and delivery member rotatable on said post, a reciprocating disc pivoted to the bottom plate at a position offset with respect to the post, said disc being apertured to clear the post in movement thereof, said disc having a pair of widely spaced projecting arms, a pressure roller supported on one of said arms, means whereby the other arm can be actuated in movement of said roller in one direction, tensional means for moving the roller in the opposite direction, a back-up roller supported on the bottom plate adjacent and in spaced relation to the first named roller when in normal position, spaced guides on the bottom plate at opposed sides of said first named roller for guidance of an elongated tape element between said rollers, and means for retaining said member in position with a tab thereon abutting said back-up roller and in predetermined alinement with and facing a surface of said tape element.

10. A device as defined in claim 9, wherein said member comprises a pair of spaced discs, one of said discs having circumferentially spaced slits for reception of correspondingly spaced tabs, and the other disc forming a support for the tabs in definitely positioning the tabs in relationship to said elongated tape element.

11. In apparatus for feeding an elongated tape element,

. a unitary index tab applying device, said device comprising spaced guides for passing a tape element in a predetermined path through said device, a pair of normally spaced rollers positioned at opposed sides of said tape element, a

adhesive section on the tab facing a surface of said tape 10 element. 1

13. A structure as defined in claim 11, wherein tensional means is employed for normal support of the second named roller in spaced relation to the first named roller and clear of the path of movement of said tape element 5 through the device.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,905,446 Dewey et a1 Apr. 25, 1933 

1. A DEVICE OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, COMPRISING A BOTTOM PLATE FIXED TO A SUPPORT, A BACK-UP ROLLER, GUIDES SPACED WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER AND TO SAID ROLLER, MEANS BETWEEN SAID GUIDES MOVABLE TOWARD AND FROM SAID BACKUP ROLLER AND ROTATABLE MEMBER FOR INTERMITTENTLY DELIVERING SAID SUPPORTING INDEXING MEANS BETWEEN SAID BACK-UP ROLLER AND SAID FIRST NAMED MEANS, SAID BACK-UP ROLLER GUIDES, FIRST NAMED MEANS AND ROTATABLE MEMBER BEING ALL MOUNTED IN CONNECTION WITH SAID BOTTOM PLATE IN DEFINING AN APPLICATOR STATION, MEANS FOR FEEDING AN ELONGATED ELEMENT OVER THE GUIDES AT SAID STATION AND BETWEEN SAID FIRST NAMED MEANS AND BACK-UP ROLLER, AND SAID FIRST NAMED MEANS BEING ACTUATED TO MOVE SAID ELEMENT INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID INDEXING MEANS AND BACK-UP ROLLER IN APPLICATION OF SAID INDEXING MEANS TO SAID ELEMENT. 